1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns a marketing piece for application to a substrate such as an envelope or container and which provides, when applied to the substrate, a pocket wherein a portion of the marketing piece is received and held in place.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is well-known in the art to apply labels to substrates such as envelopes and containers. Those labels typically use a wettable or pressure sensitive adhesive to attach the label to the substrate. In the case of a label having pressure sensitive adhesive, the label is typically provided to the user with a backing or carrier sheet having a silicone release coating which facilitates the separation of the label from the backing. More recently, various different types of labels have been developed which are adapted to provide several plies on which printable indicia is applied. Moreover, the labels heretofore developed are designed to provide a recipient address to facilitate mailing of the substrate. Examples of various labels are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,413,383, 5,735,549, 6,186,554, 6,213,518, 6,394,500 and 6,616,189, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Also known in the art are advertising solicitations sent by mail. These pieces are typically in form of letters or postcards which must meet postal standards for handling. Such advertising campaigns have a significant expense not only in the cost of material and labor involved in printing, but also high postage costs (currently about $0.23 for bulk mail) and handling costs. Such advertising campaigns involving mass mailings are often regarded by the recipient as “junk mail” and it is not uncommon for many such mailings to be discarded without being read by the recipient. Moreover, such advertising campaigns have significant ecological costs, in that additional energy is required to transport the mailings and the high rate of discard adds to landfill tonnage.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a marketing piece which can be applied to a substrate in a manner like a label, but wherein the construction of the marketing piece provides significant flexibility in use, together with a degree of security. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a marketing piece which can reduce handling and transport costs and reduce landfill tonnage. Furthermore, it is an object of the present invention that can be more specifically targeted to recipients than conventional mass mailings, and thus decrease useless and unproductive marketing materials.